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Problem-Solving Games for a Child

Problem-solving is a key skill for success in school, particularly in subjects such as math and science. Some children rise to challenges and see problems as opportunities to challenge themselves. Often these children use a systematic way of tackling problems and they use these skills in different learning situations. Problem-solving games are tools that help your child explore different problem-solving techniques such as brainstorming and analogy.

Challenges
- Problem-solving relies on the ability to identify the nature of the problem and break it down into sub-parts. Finding new alternative ways of looking upon the problem is a way to solve the problem, and different techniques can be used such as looking for a relationship between different parts of the problem. A child needs to learn to put the different parts together and to evaluate the new solution.
Young Children
- The Problem Site has problem-solving games for young children as well as for older children. There are games that children who cannot read yet can play if someone reads the questions for them. In the Colors, Shapes &Sizes game, preschool children and older children learn to recognize ways in which objects are similar and ways in which they are different. The game Guess It! helps children to develop their skills to make estimates. A group of objects appears on the screen for a short period of time. The objects are not visible long enough for a child to count them and the child is asked to estimate the number of objects.
Older Children
- The Problem Site also has games for older children. On the Brainfood Page, you can find brainteasers, riddles, word puzzles and math puzzles. Your child can make a word ladder where the word fake should be changed one letter at a time to become a word that means above and beyond. Different solutions that have been entered are archived each year and the solutions can provide ideas for solving the problems. There are numerous math problem that can be solved, and the Calculus Page has problems that are suitable for high school students.
Lateral Thinking Games
- The site Brain Food has lateral-thinking puzzles, which are a hybrid between puzzles and storytelling. Clues to a scenario are given, and the child has to fill in the details and complete the story. There is more than one possible solution to the puzzles and it is possible to add red herrings and to adjust the difficulty of the puzzle. The site Eluzions also has lateral problem-solving problems and logic puzzles. Lateral thinking problem-solving relies on changing the perspective to find the solution.

Kids Games